Andy’s Easy, Yummy Chili

Yes, I know it’s in a Diego Dixie bowl, but sometimes I just don’t want to wash the dishes.

Andy made this chili yesterday, and it was really good. What did he put in it? you ask. Not a whole lot, actually.

Andy’s Easy, Yummy Chili

1 pound ground beef, cooked
1 can kidney beans
1 can black beans
1 can Ready for Chili Tomatoes (it has spices and stuff in it - we used Wal-Mart’s Great Value brand)
And a little brown sugar

Simmer for about 20 minutes.

If you want to sneak in a little more nutrition, you could add some pureed spinach (no one will even notice) and/or some ground flax seeds. Enjoy!

Instant Potato Soup

Mix up a jar and keep it handy for when you need a quick dinner or some feel-good soup.

I found this recipe all over the internet, and I’m not going to bother telling you the 3 million websites it comes from.

Instant Potato Soup

2 cups instant mashed potatoes
1 & 1/2 cups instant milk powder
3-4 cubes HerbOx Chicken Bouillon, crushed*
2 tsp dried minced onion
1 tsp dried parsley
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp dried thyme
1 & 1/2 tsp seasoning salt (I used McCormick’s)

Mix all ingredients and store in a 1 quart jar.

To serve:
Place 1/2 cup instant soup mix in a soup bowl, cup or mug. Add one cup of boiling water and stir until smooth.
Top with shredded cheddar and bits of bacon, if desired.

* The original recipe (or all the versions I saw, LOL) called for 2 tablespoons of powdered bouillon. Since I just have the HerbOx cubes (because they’re gf), I crushed them with my mortar and pestle and figured it took about 5 cubes to make 2 tbs. I think 5 cubes is too chickeny for my soup, which is why I’m writing 3 or 4 cubes. Also, the recipe called for 1/8 teaspoon turmeric. I don’t have any, so I can’t very well tell you to use it, can I?

Braden really enjoyed his soup. Carter was not in the mood for food, so his lack of empty bowl does not count.

Taco Soup

One of my favorite soups of all time - Taco Soup. I got this recipe from Terri on the Delphi Celiac Forum. Yum.

Taco Soup

1 & 1/2 lb. hamburger meat
2 Tbs. minced onion flakes
2 cups water
1 can Rotel (diced tomatoes and green chilies)
1 can pinto beans
1 can corn
1 package McCormick’s taco seasoning mix

Brown ground beef and add onion flakes in a soup pot. Put other ingredients in. Simmer 20 minutes. Serve in large bowls with Mission Corn Tortilla Strips and a healthy covering of shredded cheddar cheese. VERY good and VERY easy to make.

Easy Bean and Ham Soup

Mom asked me to get her 2 packages of beans while I was at the store the other day, and then she asked me to soak the beans for her (since she was coming in the early morning to watch my kids yesterday). So I soaked 2 packages of beans. That’s a lot of beans. So she made some soup for me in my Crockpot.

Easy Bean and Ham Soup

1 package of dried Great Northern beans (about a pound), soaked overnight
Some ham (I had a package of ham steaks - about a pound; or leftover ham)
Some carrots (I had some matchstick carrots left in the fridge - easy route, no shredding)
oh, and some water - kinda important

Cook in the Crockpot on high for about 5 hours (give or take). You’ll want to taste it and see if it needs salt (depends on how salty your ham was). If you leave it on low for another couple of hours, you get mush (which some people like). We like to eat ours with some shredded mozzarella.